Editor’s note: The ClassicCars.com Journal will be covering all of the action during Arizona Auction Week in Scottsdale, Arizona. Check out our other coverage here.
The analysts from the Hagerty Insider have “five fast facts” to share from Arizona Auction Week 2019 which concluded Sunday:
• Total sales from the seven auctions were $251 million, a slight increase from the $248 million generated by those sales in 2018. (Hagerty had expected that total sales would be $271 million.)
• Of the 3,294 vehicles offered up for bidding, 2,660 sold. That’s an 81 percent sell-through race, a slight decrease from the 84 percent figure for 2018.
• With the auction “week” now stretching to 10 days, 2019 represents the fourth-highest and second longest offering of vehicles in the nearly 50-year history of the Arizona auctions
• Most activity at the sales involved cars valued at less than $250,000. Cars in that price range posted the strongest prices compared with current market values. This phenomenon helped push the medium sales price from $40,700 a year ago to $47,300 this year.
• Meanwhile, cars valued at more than $1 million posted a sell-through rate of only 48 percent.
“Uneven performance at the top of the market weighed down the overall totals,” Hagerty suggested. “Although million-dollar cars were strong toward the end of 2018, the momentum hasn’t carried over to the new year as seven- and eight-figure lots in Arizona proved to be a tough sell.
“The sell-through rate at the reserve auctions was only 57 percent, down from 2018’s 66 percent despite having more no-reserve offerings at this price level. “Indeed, RM Sotheby’s and Gooding & Company both missed on their catalogue cover cars. Bonhams, however bucked this trend by selling their 1951 Maserati A6G/2000 Frua Spider for $2.755 million.”
“The top of the market is demanding perfection,” said Colin Comer, Hagerty’s marketplace editor. “Right now, Blue Chip buyers can afford to make the right decision rather than the fast decision, and that puts pressure on the seller.”
Hagerty said part of the instability at the high-end of the market traces to the “unknown official interpretations of tax law changes and general uncertainty around the economy… with many collectors choosing to take a ‘wait and see’ stance.”
As might be expected, six of the top-10 sales involved Ferraris, with Gooding & Company sweeping the top-3 positions and handling the only $5-million-plus transactions of the week.
Barrett-Jackson staged a nearly all-no-reserve auction and posted its second-best sales total ever — $126 million, according to Hagerty. Of particular note, Hagerty said, was the sale at Barrett-Jackson of a 1989 Ford Mustang LX hatchback that had been driven only 659 miles since new. The car, $42,900, a whopping 280 percent above the Hagerty Price Guide valuation.
Another “outstanding result,” said Hagerty, took place Sunday at Russo and Steele where a 2001 BMW 750iL with only 26 miles on its odometer, $24,200, a record for the E38 7-series “and supports the trend of growing appreciation for ‘youngtimer’ classics.”
“All of these story lines considered, the answer to the ever-popular question ‘How’s the market?’ depends on which market you’re talking about,” Hagerty said.
“But even for those cars that may be down, Dave Kinney, publisher of Hagerty Price Guide is quick to point out ‘there is plenty of opportunity for savvy buyers if they stay patient, watch for sound examples, and plan on holding and enjoying the car for a few years’.”
Note: The figures below are gathered by Hagerty staffers who monitor each auction, and may not include all post-block sales. Prices reported do include buyer’s fee.
Overall results, Arizona Auction Week 2019
Total sales: $250.9 million
2,660/3,294 lots sold: 81 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $94,318
2018 total sales
Total sales: $247.8 million
2666/3176 lots sold: 84 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $92,952
Overall top-10 sales
1. 1963 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Coupe, $7,595,000 (Gooding & Company)
2. 1958 Ferrari 250 GT TdF Coupe, $5,890,000 (Gooding & Company)
3. 1953 Ferrari 250 MM Spider, $5,395,000 (Gooding & Company)
4. 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO Coupe, $3,360,000 (RM Sotheby’s)
5. 1951 Maserati A6G 2000 Spider, $2,755,000 (Bonhams)
6. 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO Coupe, $2,507,500 (Gooding & Company)
7. 2019 Ford GT Heritage Coupe, $2,500,000 (Barrett-Jackson)
8. 1958 BMW 507 Roadster, $2,175,000 (RM Sotheby’s)
9. 2020 Toyota Supra Coupe, $2,100,000 (Barrett-Jackson)
10. 1967 Ferrari 330 GTS Spider, $2,012,500 (RM Sotheby’s)
Results by auction company
BARRETT-JACKSON
Total sales: $126.4 million
1,817/1,818 lots sold: 99.9 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $69,571
Top-10 sales:
1. 2019 Ford GT Heritage Coupe, $2,500,000*
2. 2020 Toyota Supra Coupe, $2,100,000*
3. 2019 McLaren Senna Coupe, $1,457,500
4. 2014 Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG Sport Utility Vehicle 4×4, $1,210,000
5. 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Coupe, $1,100,000*
6. 2012 Lexus LFA Nurburgring Coupe, $918,500
7. 2005 Saleen S7 Twin Turbo Coupe, $687,500
8. 2016 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 C7.R Edition Coupe, $600,000
9. 2006 Ford GT Heritage Coupe, $533,500
10. 2015 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R Coupe, $500,000
* Charity car
2018 results
Total sales: $112.3 million
1709/1729 lots sold: 99 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $65,692
BONHAMS
Total sales: $16.1 million
108/120 lots sold: 90 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $149,070
Top-10 sales:
1. 1951 Maserati A6G 2000 Spider, $2,755,000
2. 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Coupe, $1,110,000
3. 1963 Porsche Carrera 2 GS Cabriolet, $1,000,500
4. 1934 Mercedes-Benz 500K Tourer, $830,000
5. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Saloon, $610,000
6. 1946 Fiat 1100C Spider, $577,000
7. 1970 Mercedes-Benz 280SE 3.5 Cabriolet, $362,500
8. 1956 Porsche 356A Speedster, $362,500
9. 1937 Jaguar SS100 2.5 Roadster, $329,500
10. 1989 Porsche 911 Turbo 930 Cabriolet, $229,600
2018 results
Total sales: $25.2 million
94/108 lots sold: 87 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $267,649
GOODING & COMPANY
Total sales: $48.1 million
105/124 lots sold: 85 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $458,458
Top-10 sales:
1. 1963 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Coupe, $7,595,000
2. 1958 Ferrari 250 GT TdF Coupe, $5,890,000
3. 1953 Ferrari 250 MM Spider, $5,395,000
4. 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO Coupe, $2,507,500
5. 1952 Ferrari 212 Europa Coupe, $1,930,000
6. 1963 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso Coupe, $1,902,500
7. 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Coupe, $1,435,000
8. 1964 Shelby Cobra 289 R&P Roadster, $1,050,000
9. 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster, $1,006,000
10. 1965 Shelby Cobra 289 R&P Roadster, $912,500
2018 results
Total sales: $49.2 million
110/129 lots sold: 85 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $447,415
RM SOTHEBY’S
Total sales: $36.8 million
129/154 lots sold: 84 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $285,448
Top-10 sales:
1. 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO Coupe, $3,360,000
2. 1958 BMW 507 Roadster, $2,175,000
3. 1967 Ferrari 330 GTS Spider, $2,012,500
4. 1948 Tucker 48 Sedan, $1,600,000
5. 1956 Bentley S1 Continental Coachbuilt Drophead Coupe, $1,077,500
6. 2017 Ferrari F12tdf Coupe, $1,006,000
7. 1930 Cadillac Series 452 Fleetwood Sport Phaeton, 5-p., $940,000
8. 2012 Lexus LFA Coupe, $885,000
9. 1968 Ferrari 330 GTC Coupe, $687,000
10. 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Cut Spyder, $670,500
2018 results
Total sales: $36.0 million
110/127 lots sold: 87 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $327,641
RUSSO AND STEELE
Total sales: $11.8 million
308/621 lots sold: 50 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $38,464
Top-10 sales: numbers?
2012 Lexus LFA Coupe, $375,000*
1972 Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Coupe, $330,000
2006 Ford GT Coupe, $286,000
1967 Dodge Charger Fastback, $280,500
1970 Plymouth Cuda Hardtop Coupe, $231,000
2002 BMW Z8 Roadster, $165,000
1971 Mercedes-Benz 280SL Convertible, $152,900
1998 Lamborghini Diablo SV Coupe, $148,500
1967 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible, $145,750
1964 Porsche 356C Cabriolet, $143,000
* Charity car
2018 results
Total sales: $15.9 million
415/646 lots sold: 64 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $38,197
SILVER AUCTIONS ARIZONA
Total sales: $2.5 million
139/384 lots sold: 36 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $17,861
Top-10 sales:
1. 2016 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Convertible, $84,240
2. 1932 Ford Model A Sport Coupe, $59,400
3. 1969 Pontiac GTO Coupe, $52,920
4. 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air Sedan, $51,840
5. 1958 Pontiac Bonneville Hardtop Coupe, $49,680
6. 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Seville Hardtop, $49,500
7. 1932 Hupmobile Series F-222 Convertible Coupe, $49,140
8. 1941 Cadillac Series 62 Fisher Deluxe Convertible Coupe, 2/4-p., $48,600
9. 1931 REO Royale Model 35 Sedan, $45,360
10. 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible, $43,200
2018 results
Total: $3.2 million
178/355 lots sold: 50 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $17,756
WORLDWIDE AUCTIONEERS
Total sales: $9.1 million
54/73 lots sold: 74 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $168,260
Top-10 sales:
1. 1959 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster, $990,000
2. 1935 Auburn 851 Supercharged Speedster, $687,500
3. 1935 Auburn 851 Supercharged Speedster, $632,500
4. 1936 Duesenberg Model JN Rollston Convertible Sedan, $605,000
5. 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe, $522,500
6. 1931 Duesenberg Model J Judkins Limousine, $506,000
7. 1947 Delahaye 135M Cabriolet, $357,500
8. 1927 Bentley 3-Litre Sports Tourer, $330,000
9. 1932 Auburn 12-160A Custom Speedster, $291,500
10. 1966 Jaguar E-Type SI 4.2 Roadster, $266,750
2018 results
Total: $6.1 million
50/82 lots sold: 61 percent sell-through rate
Average sale price: $122,319